RECIPE BOOK
OUR
FAVORITE RECIPES
This is a collection of our favorite go-to recipes. I always adapt these recipes to fit within the dietary guidelines that we live by. For example if a recipe calls for "vegetable oil," I'll usually sub lard or cold pressed olive oil. Use your best judgement with ingredients, and when in doubt go as natural as possible.
Entrees
This is an authentic Curried Goat recipe. Be sure to use real deal Jamaican curry powder such as the Blue Mountain Country blend on my HD Approved Products page. Also be sure to use a natural cooking oil like lard, tallow, or cold pressed olive oil.
This is a perfect curry chicken recipe - as with any Jamaican curry dish, be sure to use authentic Jamaican curry powder such as the Blue Mountain Country brand. We make this quite often and it never gets old; definitely a staple dish for spice lovers.
Jamaican pot roast is like American pot roast, but with the flavor kicked up by fresh thyme, allspice, and flavorful scotch bonnet or habanero peppers. This goes really well with fermented scotch bonnet hot sauce, or whatever your favorite brand is. Definitely give this a try on a cold winter night.
If you've ever wondered what goes into creating an amazing scratch made bowl of Ramen, then definitely check out this recipe. There are so many steps and nuances that go into this soup, but it is totally worth learning the process. You'll never look at Ramen soup the same way.
This is absolutely the best chicken soup in the world. I've found that this recipe has the best basic format for preparing chicken soup, but the seasonings can be adjusted to your liking. Be sure to add some nice starchy yams, carrots, and fresh herbs. Yum!!
This is a great introduction to New Orleans flavors. The recipe keeps is relatively basic and straight forward, but the end result is absolutely delicious. Having made many, many creole dishes, I can whole heartedly give this dish my stamp of approval.
This is a great fall dish - fairly simple to make with a little planning ahead. Be sure to soak your beans overnight before, and use homemade chicken stock.
Black gram lentils offer an amazing gooey consistency - sort of like cooked okra. This dish is absolutely delicious and is a great showcase for authentic Indian flavors. Garam Masala is widely available in supermarkets, but if you're feeling extra adventurous then it's great to grind your own fresh spice mix - give it a try some time!
This recipe is everything I love - authentic, scratch made, and delicious! Definitely prepare your own pasta and sauce - it is totally worth the extra time.
This is the best tomato bisque I've ever made. I've kept this Chef John recipe up my sleeve for years. I almost always serve this with einkorn sourdough grilled cheese sandwiches and the kids love it!
If you can get your hands on a beef tongue, then you must give this a try! I first tried "lengua" tacos at a taco stand when I was feeling adventurous, and I fell in love. Beef tongue is one of the most rich and tender meats you will ever have, and it pairs perfectly with tacos. I highly recommend giving this a try for your next taco night, you will not be disappointed!
This is a guilty pleasure food because it is essentially candied fried chicken. At least you can make this with organic ingredients and use real natural oil to cook it. Olive oil or lard work really well for frying this. We eat this maybe once per month, but when we do everyone loves the chef!
Stir fries are so quick and easy once you get a feel for managing the heat in your wok or large pan. This dish is super easy and absolutely bursting with fresh flavors - great for a quick weeknight meal.
I so love this dish - it is super, super easy and the flavor does not disappoint. I also really like the fact that I can prepare restaurant quality Thai food in 15 minutes and cook it in the natural oil of my choice. I'd highly recommend keeping the ingredients stocked in your pantry so you're never more than a few minutes away from a great family meal.
SNACKS/Sides
Scallops are so tender, mildly sweet, and the perfect seafood for this ceviche. Shrimp and white fish work equally well, but scallops are my favorite! Curing the scallops in lime juice helps to preserve the life giving properties in the food, so definitely step outside your comfort zone and give this a try. Not to mention this is a next level dish that will both impress and satisfy all those who try it.
Kimchi is all about the Korean red pepper flakes. You can order a big bag of these online or head to the nearest international market for some. The rest of the ingredients are fairly basic, and can be adjusted to your liking and what you have on hand. I love how most meals in Asian countries are paired with some variety of fermented sauces and/or vegetables. We could definitely stand to take a few notes from Asian food culture for that reason.
This is a stand-in for side dishes with our Sunday meals. We try not to eat too much rice, but once a week or so we go all in and make a huge spread. Whenever our big meal is Jamaican or Caribbean this is a must have side dish. This is much better if you soak your own beans the night before, so plan to do so.
This is a quick and easy riff on side salad. Sauerkraut works equally well, but this simple salad is a great last minute addition to rich Jamaican curries to cut the richness of the dish.
Chicken liver, oh how I love you. These livers are next level and are a great way to introduce the kids to them. They will be gone before you know it!
This is my favorite steak tartare recipe - there are definitely easier versions that don't use mushrooms, but I like the bulk the mushrooms add to make this a bigger dish. Definitely pair this with the red beet vinaigrette that can be found in the sauces section of the recipes page.
These are a labor of love, and you don't always have to follow all the steps, but it's great to have a breakdown of what goes into making the perfect roasted potatoes. This recipe deserves a good read when you have a couple minutes to read all the info presented.
These should always be on hand in your kitchen. The flavor and convenience of these onions are unmatched by fresh cut onions - kick up your salads, tacos, or meat dishes with this awesome staple kitchen item.
Callaloo is native to warmer climates like Jamaica, and various other greens can be substituted if need be. No matter the green you use, this is a great traditional Jamaican recipe for greens and it pairs very well with any rich gravy or curry based dish.
Rich, creamy, irony goodness! Pate is forgotten about in America and I'd like to spearhead a resurgence of this amazing appetizer/snack food. This tastes great, goes perfectly with cheese and crackers, and is super healthy for you and the kids. Give it a try next time you come across beef liver and don't know what to do with it.
This is a really great snack - perfect for high fat diets like keto, and so, so tasty and satisfying. I highly recommend making this yourself so you can use raw cheese and homemade olive oil mayonnaise. Store bought stuff always has cheap oils and cheeses and cannot compare.
These are super low carb and great for pairing with caviar or smoked salmon. Roll these up with some cream cheese spread and smoked salmon, and you are in heaven! Perfect for high fat diets like keto, and can be whipped up in 5 minutes for lunch or a quick snack.
Pickled carrots are surprisingly delicious and easy to make. This is a great recipe, but you can adjust the flavors as you see fit. Kids love these and they are great to have on hand for last minute additions to salads, meats, or a nice cheese plate.
Salt pork is so great to have on hand because it keeps in the fridge for so long, and it can be tossed into just about any dish. Who doesn't love the taste of bacon, and the rendered fat provides a perfect cooking oil for any sauce or stir fry.
This is the best way to prepare hummus, hands down. I love to include this in my kids' lunch boxes because they love to dip veggies in it, and it tastes great. It makes me feel like I'm doing something right when I give them nutrient filled foods that help them get through the school day feeling good.
Sauces
As you may have read on my blog, I believe that sauces are the key to helping us eat less and stay full. This is one of the classic French Mother Sauces, and provides an excellent starting point for richer, creamier sauces, or is great on its own served over any basic meat and vegetable meal.
Making demi glace is a true labor of love. From making the bone stocks, reducing, simmering, and mixing, demi glace is something that is time consuming, but pays dividends in the end. The flavor this sauce yields is intense and unmistakable. Learn to do this and do it well. Your family will thank you.
Another of the French Mother Sauces - this is a rich, thickened, slightly tomatoey sauce that is an essential component in demi glace and many other fine sauces.
Pasta night will never be the same after you've made this tomato sauce. You'll can sub thick cut bacon for the salt pork, or better yet make your own salt pork from pork belly. You'll also need a ham bone, or pork soup bones, but the labor is definitely worth it because this is the best tomato sauce you've never had.
Bechamel, oh how I love thee. This is perfect for lasagna, or as a base to various other creamy sauces. Any serious home cook must master the classic bechamel and this recipe is great for learning.
My family loves Mexican foods, and when we are feeling especially hungry I'll whip up some of this nacho cheese sauce to pour over an enchilada bake, or dip chips into. Perfect for football snacks! I'm sure it doesn't need to be said, but the store bought stuff is just awful and has so many weird ingredients, please don't eat that stuff or give it to your kids!
This is a super simple and delicious sauce. Definitely something that works for a quick weeknight meal. Serve it over baked chicken and veggies, or with pasta if that's what you're having.
Classic hollandaise is such a great sauce, and there are so many variations of this enzyme rich sauce. When properly done this is made with raw butter and raw egg yolks. The authentic technique yields a sauce that maintains the raw enzymes in the ingredients, but warms everything enough to incorporate everything together and make it a pourable consistency.
I love how easy blender sauces are. Ive found that the VitaMix blender on low works just like a constantly stirring whisk, but it's so much easier! any high powered blender would work, but the VitaMix is a such a daily work horse for us, I love it! Give this sauce a try for your next weekend brunch and your family will thank you! Eggs will never be the same without it...
This sauce is amazing. The flavor of fresh shallots and herbs are incorporated into a butter rich sauce that absolutely should be served with your next steak. This sauce is one of the reasons steak houses can get away with charging $60 for a steak - it elevates meat and seafood to a level that commands respect for the chef. Use the blender hollandaise technique when mixing this sauce, and you've just cut your work in half. Give it a try!
This is similar to bearnaise sauce, but a bit lighter because there are no egg yolks. This is great with seafood or lighter meats, and works in a pinch when you don't have eggs on hand.
This is a great all purpose sauce to keep on hand for quick weeknight stir fries. Adjust the flavors any way you like, but always use fresh and homemade ingredients.
Condiments
This ketchup is wonderful and is so much better than store bought. Meats digest much more easily when paired with fermented condiments, so I love to keep this on hand for burgers and hot dogs, or to top over dinners. Super easy to make, so do give this a try.
This will elevate your sandwiches and salads to another level. Absolutely give this a try, as it's super easy and will last forever in the fridge.
Store bought hot sauce will not compare, and they always have some form of preservatives. Why not skip the preservative and make your own fermented hot sauce. All you need is a blender and this comes together in seconds.
This is a simple vinaigrette, but subtle additions to the typical vinaigrette like soaking shallots for a while in the vinegar make this particular version taste amazing. This is a staple recipe for our salads.
Ranch dressing from the store is terrible - there is not one that I would give our kids. This homemade version is delicious and the only way my kids will come close to ranch anything. Love it.
This is one of those dressings that I fell in love with as a child. I love the fresh flavors, and that classic Japanese salad is even better at home. There are many recipes out there, but I've found this to be the best one.
This sauce is to be paired with the steak tartare recipe in the snacks section of the recipes page. The beet juice can be subbed with pickled beet juice from a jar in a pinch and works equally well if you don't have a juicer. Love, love this sauce with steak tartare and you will wow your family or guests if you take a little extra time to get this together.
Classic delicious salad dressing with an Asian flare. This goes really well with Japanese style meals, or on the side of stir fries.
Breakfast
Strawberry smoothies are a mainstay in our morning routine - they are delicious, simple to make, and healthy for the kids. I almost always add a couple farm fresh egg yolks to this, and use frozen cherries in place of honey or other sweetener. The egg yolks fortify this smoothie to make it the perfect breakfast food, so don't skip them if your kids are drinking this before school.
We always use freshly ground kamut or einkorn flour and soak it overnight with homemade kefir, or cultured buttermilk. I also add extra butter to the batter - about 1/2 cup all together, then top them with a mixture of 1/2 butter, 1/2 maple syrup. These are so, so good and are waaay better than your typical flapjacks.
Baked oatmeal is so good, and once it's cooled it can be served broken up in a bowl and topped with milk and maple syrup. This eats like cereal, but is waaay better for the kiddos. We always roll our own oats to maximize the freshness and nutrient availability. I highly recommend investing in an oat roller because pre-rolled oats are nothing like freshly rolled; there is a night and day difference.
This is a classic Swedish oatmeal dish that soaks the oats overnight, and it's super healthy, especially when you use freshly rolled oats. Very, very tasty and the flavors can be adapted any way you like. The key is to soak the oats and dairy together at least overnight and up to 5 days in the fridge.
Beverages
This classic Indian drink is served with meals, or as a stand alone. It's a great snack for kids - and a great way to use up yogurt and fresh fruit. Simple and delicious.
We always keep a jar of kefir going right next to our sourdough starter. This is a staple item for us that we use in smoothies and to soak flour or oats overnight. I highly recommend getting some kefir grains and incorporating this into your daily routine.
This is the best kombucha and it is SO GOOD for you! I think adding the fizz and a slight ginger flavor make it much, much better than plain kombucha, so this is the way we do it now.
This is a great summertime refresher, much in the same way that typical lemonade is, but this is way better for you and the kiddos. Give it a try and let the kids help squeeze the lemons.
Baked Goods
This is our absolute go-to sandwich bread recipe. Full of nutrition and all the right things to keep your little ones going.
These crackers are amazing! Some of the best crackers we have ever had. I don't always take the time to cut out the goldfish shapes, so you can also use a pizza cutter and cut the dough into squares. You can also make plain sourdough crackers by omitting the seasonings and cheese - works just as well. The only problem with these is they get eaten up so quickly!
These are another labor of love food that are fun to make every once in a while. They are easier than you might think, but they do take time, as you have to chill the dough in between steps.
Soaked flour breads are far more nutritious than bread mixed up right away, and it's easier than using sprouted flour. I like to use at least 1/2 freshly ground flour to up the nutrients in this bread. Serve with a nice spread of grass fed butter and your kids will love you!
This is so moist and delicious and perfect for that fall/winter baked goods fix. I always use at least 1/2 freshly ground flour because there are so many more nutrients in fresh flour. Give this a try!
There is just nothing like a fresh baked baguette. This definitely takes a few tries to get just right, but the result is totally worth it. This is not something we eat all the time, but once in a while we need a treat like this for sandwiches or to dip in pasta sauce, etc.
This is the only recipe where I'll use some instant yeast. As the author notes in the recipe, these are still far, far better than store bought. I've found almost all store bought buns to be so terrible with the ingredients, I just have to shake my head. These are worth the extra effort for burgers, and they double as a great base for PB&J.
I'm always playing around with different cookie recipes, but this soaked flour version is my current go-to when we must have cookies.